I'm a technical writer, so this is my place to write something that's not technical. Sure, a lot of this is just for me, but I am happy so share all the ups and downs of an actual grownup who's trying to get both smart and wise. It's definitely a journey.

There's More to Life Than Knitting!

Join Suna as she stops knitting long enough to ponder her life, share her joys and concerns, and comment on the goings on in the world.You are very welcome here, so feel free to comment and contribute!

Monday, November 19, 2007

Musical Weekend

Hi everyone. I am feeling really down about the job prospects, since Lee lost out on the good job he was up for (he must have caught the "second place" germ from me), and none of my prospects contacted me at all last week. I did some useful networking at church yesterday, though--wow it takes a lot of energy to self promote. Actually, I am only saying this to explain why I might not sound as up-beat as I should, given the nice things in this post. My cruddy mood is not the focus here.

The real focus is on the lovely concert the Round Rock Community Choir gave on Saturday. I am using the picture that shows the context of the stage--it is a beautiful sanctuary, only a few years old at the First United Methodist Church in Round Rock, where the director is also choir director. (Turns out there are a lot of choir directors in this choir!) We all look sort of like Pilgrims in our black and white, which perhaps makes a pre-Thanksgiving Christmas concert more appropriate. There are a couple of more photos on Flickr.

We had a good rehearsal Saturday morning, and I was happy to see the kids' middle school band director was the percussionist. Then I went to the yarn shop for a short while--only one friend was there, so I talked to her a bit and left. Most of the afternoon I rested--both Lee and I were feeling sad and icky, so sleep was a good thing.

The concert went very well Saturday evening, at least from my viewpoint. Other than my shoes killing my feet (next time, flats, not even the most comfy heels) and my left bicep rebelling from holding up a notebook for 4 hours in one day (I use the right hand for page turns). I did not mess up much at all, and was very proud of myself. All the singers did beautifully, and I enjoyed talking to more of the people than I had before. I wish I wasn't so slow to warm up to people! The music was so lovely. I got teary during the big crescendo on the Rutter Gloria, and the director got all weepy at two of the other songs, they came out so well. Plus, the 12 Days of Christmas in twelve different types of music went off very well. It is very funny, if you are a music person (Ha ha, that one was Strauss! Hee hee, that Wagner one was a hoot!).

Unfortunately, Lee and the kids had so much trouble getting to the concert that I doubt they enjoyed it very much. Forgotten cameras, flat tires in Debate Boy's car, etc. I do appreciate the photos, though. Sometimes Tuba Boy's frenetic personal life makes things difficult. But it was sweet of him to bring friends to see the second half of the concert, anyway.

Sunday was as full of music as Saturday was. Church choir was somewhat challenging, as I felt like the only one who knew the parts. But, there was an interesting composer fellow who did the rest of the music at church and he was VERY interesting. One piece was a long bass violin solo he did, and it was really modern, yet listenable. He got some very high notes out of that thing. The other piece he wrote was for piano, oboe and voice, and he just directed it. Our choir director did the piano, and the two other musicians were great--and really nice. We enjoyed talking to all of them.

After church, we listened to Tuba Boy play tuba with some fun others (including Saranda's daughter) learning some Dixieland music. I keep being impressed at how well he sightreads and plays. It was fun for those of us watching to just listen to the music and relax a bit. Relaxing is good.

And I did do some this weekend--other than being very frustrated at lace knitting instructions at first, I made good progress on that, and enjoyed seeing what I could make out of very fine silk. Plus I cooked what passes for our family's Thanksgiving this year. Lee bought turkey breast and I made Stove Top stuffing (ugh) but it was good. And I did make cranberry sauce from scratch and delicious sweet potatoes. I tried steaming collards. Nope, back to the old-fashioned southern way next time!

It was nice to hear what the kids and Lee were thankful for. Especially when Tuba Boy said he was thankful for his stable family structure. I think he was really, really relieved that Lee helped him and his friends with the flat tire issue. It has to be so nice to know you have someone to rely on in emergencies who won't yell at you. I know I am relieved to have someone in my life who will help all of us and is so generous with his time and energy.

And because of that, I know we will get by. If nothing else, I am always thankful for my wonderful little family. Happy early Thanksgiving, US people! Happy new week, international friends.

About Me

I am told I am kind, funny, loyal (to a fault), intelligent and intimidating. You be the judge of that. I am an INFP and weird, but in a nice way. I am in love with my Psychic Twin Lee and happy with my fun and fascinating young adult sons. I knit pretty much every minute when I am not typing stuff.